Rusty's Birthday
by Immas13
Summary: Rusty's Birthday isn't something he has had time to think about, let alone celebrate the past few months, therefore Sharon takes the responsibility to give Rusty a Happy Birthday to remember. ( This is my first story and I'm not sure if it's going to be a one shot or a continuation, I will let you all decide that for me, hope you enjoy! )
1. Chapter 1

Rusty's Birthday

As rusty rolled over he realized it was morning, he looked up at the clock to see it was 9am, on a Saturday, usually Rusty would still be sound asleep… he started to wonder what woke him up when he put his head back to the pillow attempting to catch a few more hours he realized he smelled pancakes….possibly some eggs, and then it hit him like a sudden wave…Today was his Birthday.

Rusty slid out of bed in his Pj pants and t-shirt, hair a complete mess as he walked down the hall following the smell…he walked past the couch and into the table set for two…Sharon behind the stove working on breakfast, already dressed in her blue jeans and red casual t-shirt, her hair around her shoulders, her glasses framing her face as she looked over smiling at him.

"Good Morning, how did you sleep?" she smiled as she brought a plate of already made pancakes over to the table for him.

" Good, what's all this for? " he looked at her in a bit of confusion, Sharon rarely made breakfast, at least nothing Rusty would get more than ten feet from. Usually it was some cereal she ate that looked like pine cones in a cup, or this awful smelling drink she called _delightful _… that looked more like green mush, never something that looked edible… usually anything that tasted like food was Rusty's department. He often wondered how her own children survived all the years living with her horrible cooking skills.

Sharon smiled and walked over to the counter picking up a blue card and a gift which looked like a book from his view, and walking back over to him sitting down smiling, " Happy Birthday Rusty" she grinned with excitement as she waited for rusty to open the card and the gift. Rusty knew his manners and opened the card first a little excited, it's been awhile since anyone thought to get rusty something for his birthday, even a card…his own mother's memory hadn't been so great the past few years and Rusty didn't complain when she occasionally forgot until a few months later. Rusty opened the card to read "Happy Birthday, you've meant a lot to me over the past few months: Messier spaces, bigger grocery bills, a few broken glasses, your bed never made. You've also meant…more love, more hugs and a whole lot of adventure, Happy Birthday Rusty, thank you for being a part of my family"

Rusty's laughed a bit about Sharon's sense of humor, she always mentioned how messy he kept things every chance she could…reading the last few words created some tears in his eye, as well as hers " a part of my family" Rusty couldn't believe that not long ago he was on the streets working to have food, and now he had this amazing new life, a new beginning, a place to belong. He looked up at Sharon to say something seeing a tear drop from her face and she quickly wiped it away not giving him a chance. "Okay open your gift already!" she smiled sitting back in her chair watching him open the paper in excitement.

Rusty opened the gift to find it wasn't book after all, but a movie he's been talking about the past few weeks. Sharon smiled seeing she had gotten what he wanted. "Are you surprised? " she smiled looking at him over the table seeing his smile only nodding his head in approval until he looked up, " thanks Sharon" he smiled and moved over giving her a brief hug and sitting back down.

" Your welcome Rusty" she smiled getting up to grab her some more orange juice moving around to the fridge as rusty began to dish himself the pancakes, " So where do you want to go to dinner tonight, anything sound good? "

Rusty looked over at Sharon shrugging his shoulders a bit "I don't know, what do your kids like to eat? I don't want them to go somewhere they don't like."

Sharon smiled at Rusty sitting back down at the table" They will eat anything, and it's YOUR birthday, which means you get to choose, they are just excited to finally meet you"

Excited? Rusty wasn't sure he honestly believed Sharon, I mean…Rusty wouldn't be _excited _ if his mom brought home a new kid home. I mean she usually brought home a new boyfriend and he was never very excited about those either.

Sharon could see the wheels turning in Rusty's head and stopped him before he had a chance to really think everything through.

"Rusty, my kids are excited to meet you, my son has been talking about that same movie for the past few weeks, I'm sure he'd be more than thrilled to watch it with you and my daughter will be excited to have someone new to play chess with, she was the captain of her team her senior year at St. Josephs." Sharon scooped a few pancakes onto her plate as well as grabbing some fruit from the bowl looking over in Rusty's direction, "eat, we have a day full of fun, and it's going to require your energy."

Rusty nodded finally digging into his pancakes observing Sharon as she cut hers up into smaller pieces, being graceful as usual, unlike Rusty who was a teenage boy and could devour anything in sight. "Hey Sharon…"

"Hmm" Sharon looked up from her plate over at Rusty's direction seeing the worried look in his eyes " What is it Rusty?"

Rusty looked at Sharon with the same sad eyes he had after finding out his mother wasn't coming back, "what if they don't like me…" and there it was, the same feeling of rejection rusty had felt months ago and never wanted to experience again, he wasn't sure his heart could take it.

Sharon looked over at Rusty and reaching out to take his hand smiling as he didn't resist the contact, "Rusty, you are a part of our family now, and they will love you just as much as I do, I promise." And with that she gave Rusty's hand a gentle squeeze and sent a smile in his direction that calmed every nerve.

" I love you too Sharon."

The End


	2. Chapter 2

(Okay so I know I said this story was over, but I got a few reviews so I decided to go ahead and add another chapter, thanks for the reviews, happy you all liked it)

Dinner came sooner than expected for Rusty, although Sharon had promised Rusty her children would love him, he still had his doubts. Rusty had a hard time believing Sharon had been married when first moving in with her but time had changed his ways of thinking. Her children often called a few times during the week, to catch up or rant about something going on, it always made Rusty smile to see Sharon so happy to talk them.

The car ride to the Italian restaurant seemed long, which Rusty was thankful for, it gave him time to think about what was happening to find some way to prepare. Although he already felt like a part of Sharon's family, meeting her kids changed everything for him. _What if her kids didn't like him? Would Sharon kick Rusty out?_ _Would she love him any less?_ Rusty sat back in his chair and let out a small sigh looking over at the cars passing.

Sharon smiled hearing Rusty's small sigh loosening her grip on the steering wheel still keeping her eyes on the road as she smiles, " They got you a gift, they are very excited about meeting you."

"A gift?" Rusty began to panic sitting up quickly feeling the restraint of his seat belt against his chest, keeping him pinned back " but I- I didn't get them anything!"

"Rusty it's your birthday; they wanted to get you a gift." Sharon smiled trying to hold back a laugh knowing Rusty was uncomfortable but knowing the night would go smoothly. "Just relax sweetheart, I promise you, you're going to have a great time tonight."

"Yeah, yeah okay" Rusty sat back in the seat slumping down a bit trying to put his mind at ease, "are you sure your kids like Italian? I mean we could go anywhere they want." Rusty was pretty sure everyone liked pizza or pasta, so it was a pretty safe bet when he decided on the family owned Italian restaurant.

"Rusty you need to trust me, I'm not going to leave your side tonight, but my kids don't bite I promise." Sharon smiled as she parked the car and undoing her seat belt sending a smile in his direction "just have fun tonight, come on I'm sure they are waiting."

As they stepped into the restaurant Rusty felt his heart beating a mile a minute, Sharon scanned the room full of faces and found her two children sitting in a corner booth giving her a wave, "come on" Sharon grabbed Rusty's hand walking him over to the booth, smiling wrapping her arm around his shoulder as they reached the table. "Rusty I want you to meet my kids, this is Conner, and Olivia" Rusty smiled nodding and mumbling a quick hello as Conner moved over in his seat giving Rusty a place to sit as Sharon takes a seat next to her daughter.

Conner looked comfortable; nice even, he had green eyes like Sharon and lighter hair. He was dressed comfortably in his jeans and a t-shirt, similar to Rusty's outfit, putting him a bit at ease. When it came to Olivia, she was a clone of her mother all except for the eyes. Her light sink, he smile and nose, it was like someone had put Sharon in a time machine.

Olivia smiled at Rusty sitting on opposite sides looking him over, "It's so great to finally meet you Rusty, our mom talks about you all the time." Conner gently nudges her shoulder keeping his eyes down at her side and she smiles grabbing for the large bag sitting next to her, "here, this is for you!"

Rusty smiled, he wasn't used to getting gifts, it made him feel uncomfortable and the center of attention which he didn't enjoy, yet he took the gift being polite, "Should I open it now?"

"Yeah go for it" Conner replied giving Rusty the go ahead to open the bag and peaking inside through the tissue paper, pulling it and seeing a long paper rolled, he took it out and unrolled it a bit, it was a poster of one of his favorite horror movies Sharon refused to watch, "Wow, thanks!" Rusty beamed across the table turning the poster to show Sharon, "Can I put it on my wall?" Sharon smiled giving Rusty a small nod when Conner interrupted, "Mom told me how much you like the scary movies, I figured this was a safe bet. You will have to come over to my place sometime, I have the entire collection" Rusty smiled; maybe this wasn't going to be so bad after all.

"Keep looking, there's more." Olivia smiled and waited for Rusty to pull out his next gift. As Rusty reached his hand into the large bag he pulled out a large box, it made a bit of noise like something was rolling around and he set the bag aside, putting the box on the table and slowly opening the paper to find a new chess board and once again, a smile found its way onto his face as Olivia began to speak. " I know you already have one, but this one you can travel with, I know you go with mom after work to the station, and this way you can play, she said you were trying to teach Bazz how to play but he was having trouble following on the computer."

"Buzz" Sharon and Rusty both corrected her simultaneously, "Oh good, I thought Bazz was a strange name." Sharon giggled and shook her head as the waiter came over to get their drink order.

Yes, Rusty could handle this, Sharon was right, her kids would love him. They both seemed genuinely excited finally meet him and Rusty smiled to himself, _this is where I belong._

_TBC ? You tell me. _


	3. Chapter 3

( A little more "background information" is revealed in this chapter, I'm so thankful and happy to see all of your reviews, I'm thrilled to know you all are enjoying the story so much, I did however write this as a one shot, so any advice or direction you would like to see this story turn to would be greatly appreciated , I have some ideas but always open to new ones, please continue to review, I'm having a blast writing it! )

Dinner was going smoothly, Rusty even found himself laughing throughout the night, he was having fun, just as Sharon said he would be. They had ordered Pizza and to Rusty's surprise, Sharon had eaten more than once piece. She seemed more relaxed around her children, her laughter filled the booth with stories of Conner's fraternity brothers and their pranks and Rusty's pranks he was pulling on Provenza every now and then. Olivia informed everyone on her new art class explaining it was a much needed break from the everyday of practicing law. It made perfect sense to Rusty that Olivia would be a lawyer; with Sharon's need for rules her children seemed to follow the same code.

Rusty had gotten into a conversation with Conner over video games and horror movies and joining him and his brothers for their monthly horror movie night, when he looked over to see Olivia pull a file out of her purse and hand it to her mother, "Dad wanted me to give this to you." Olivia smiled to her mother as the boys were engrossed in talking about the newest scary movie.

"What is it?" Sharon briefly looked over at her daughter quieting her questioning voice as she opened the file taking a look inside.

"I'm not sure, we had dinner last night and he asked me to give it to you, said you would understand." Olivia hadn't looked at the file, it wasn't really her business, she figured if her father wanted her to know he would tell her, and so would her mother. She respected that they had their own way of handling things after being separated that her and Conner never questioned.

As Sharon looked over the paperwork Olivia had just given her, a confused look came across her face until she read half way through the hand written note lying on top.

_Sharon,  
I wish I could of given you this in person, but I know tonight is Rusty's birthday, and I assumed that isn't how you would want him and I to meet. When you called the other week on advice about how to deal with his father and the legal implications I knew you would soon need these papers, I've already signed where they need It, all you need is to add some additional information I couldn't find and your signature. Send them to my office once you've finished and I will make sure it's processed. They will want to meet with all of us for family sessions to make sure it is the right fit. Let me know what times are good for you and I will clear my schedule. I look forward to meeting him.  
He is a lucky young man; no one is a better mother than you.  
All my love,  
John_

Sharon flipped over the note seeing the words **Adoption Papers: Rusty Beck **and Sharon's heart skipped a beat as she closed her eyes holding back the tears. Yes, John Raydor always knew what his wife needed, although he wasn't always able to provide it through their marriage, when it came to their children he never let her down, and that was exactly who Rusty was…one of her children and he knew from the first time they had talked about him.

Sharon supposed that's why they had continued to stay married, he was a wonderful father and neither of them wanted to put their kids through an awful divorce when they were only unhappy with each other. They stayed married, but separated when Olivia and Conner where in high school, it was just easier. Sharon was able to keep the same last name of her kids and her and John were better off apart, especially through his periods of drinking and gambling. Being separated was Sharon's way to stand up for herself. They were always together as a family, they had made that promise to each other long ago, and neither had broken it, not in the 35 years of being married. Yes, when it came to their children, John Raydor was always there.

Sharon's thoughts were interrupted by her daughter's soft voice, "Mom are you alright?" Sharon hummed in response as she closed the file tucking it away in her own purse. "Yes, I'm fine." Although Olivia knew something in the file had affected her mother she let it go gently holding onto her mother's hand on the table giving her the silent comfort they both needed with a gentle squeeze.

Sharon knew she would bring up the adoption papers to her children eventually, but now wasn't the time, she wanted to talk things over with Rusty privately, make sure it's what he truly wanted before sharing the news of something so life changing. Sharon wanted more than anything for Rusty to know he was truly apart of her family, she had been thinking about adoption for weeks, ever since Daniel Dunn had signed over his legal rights to Rusty and Sharon Beck had relinquished them by abandoning him once again._ Sharon wanted for Rusty to feel that he had a home with her, a place to be loved and cherished…she only hoped he wanted the same thing. _

(I'm in need of ideas, I'm thinking the family therapy sessions could be fun, let me know any ideas, they always help! )


	4. Chapter 4

When someone knocked on the door at 8am the next morning, Sharon couldn't imagine who it could be, she had only been up for about a half hour, but once answering she found her husband standing on the other side and she suddenly felt less annoyed. His smile radiated throughout his face as he held a file in his hands, "I forgot to add these to the paperwork," Sharon stepped aside allowing him in with a nod.

"Is he here?" Sharon smiled at John's excitement, "yes he's here, he's a teenager and it's Sunday, and he's still sleeping."

"Right, of course" John nodded looking down the hallway to the spare bedroom as Sharon moved back toward the kitchen, "Coffee?"

John nodded following his wife into the kitchen taking a seat at the table seeing some of her files spread out over the table and John gave them a once over seeing a few photographs that weren't meant for someone with a weak stomach, "tough case?" Sharon gave an affirmative hum of her throat as she stepped from around the corner with two cups of coffee in hand taking a seat at her usual end of the table passing the other mug to her husband.

Once seated Sharon brought the mug to her lips, scanning John over the rim of her glasses, giving themselves a few minutes of comfortable silence before John was the first to speak. "Did you tell him?" Sharon looked down at her mug feeling the warmth created in her hands and John knew the answer was a no without having to clarify. "This is what you want, correct?" Sharon looked up giving a pleading glance and John give a confirmed nod "I see."

They had their own language, It often only took a single look or hum for John to know exactly what Sharon was thinking, and she hated that, and hated even more the amount of pleasure he got out of knowing how to read her. She had wanted to tell Rusty, she had been thrilled when she first saw the papers, but on the drive home she couldn't bring herself to start the conversation, her own doubts kept creeping out each time she opened her mouth. No not doubts about wanting Rusty to be a part of their family, but would Rusty want that. Would it make Rusty feel like a charity case? The last thing Sharon wanted to do was to make Rusty feel as if he was some boxed to be checked on her list of things to do.

Sharon's trance of thoughts had been broken by the opening of the guest room door down the hall, as John practically leaped to his feet Sharon couldn't help but grin at John's excitement to meet Rusty. It warmed her heart to know he was so accepting of her decision to make Rusty a permanent part of their lives. To clarify it would be their lives; Sharon was still legally married to John, with connected them. Thankfully John had the kindest heart of anyone Sharon knew. It was that kind heart that had lead Sharon to fall in love with John to start with…and the same kind heart she saw today, ready to explore this new adventure with her. Sharon had never mentioned the specific words of adoption to John, and they had only spoken about Rusty twice prior to receiving the adoption papers, yet John knew from their conversations that this is what Sharon wanted more than anything, to have Rusty be a true part of their family.

As Rusty padded down the hallway, he had is head down working the sleep out of his eyes, as he looked up he saw Sharon, still in her comfortable pajamas and a man in jeans and a button up t shirt standing next to her, and Rusty's mind went to the worst. _Sharon had a boyfriend? How could she have a boyfriend and not tell him? Was rusty not supposed to wake up so early?_ Usually he slept in till about noon on a Sunday, he wasn't always a sleep but he knew that was Sharon's time to work in the morning since she tried to give him her attention when she wasn't working. He usually he stayed in his room, but with the grumbling of his stomach he felt like getting up, and of course Sharon's new boyfriend was blocking his way to the kitchen. _Crap._

"Rusty there is someone I want you to meet," Sharon smiled at Rusty taking a few steps towards him then giving John a smile. Rusty didn't care to meet Sharon's love interest , he had met enough of his own mother's to know they wouldn't be around for long and it was just easier not to get comfortable. Rusty decided to humor Sharon nodding and giving up a small wave mumbling a hello as the man stood there with a stupid silly smile on his face.

"Rusty this is my husband John, John, this is Rusty." Rusty turned his head towards Sharon so fast he was sure it would have gone in a full circle if it wasn't attached. "Your Husband?!" Rusty was confused and Sharon was nervous hearing Rusty's scared voice and she set her hand on his arm lightly giving him a warm smile. "Yes my husband, remember the suit you found in your closet?" Oh, was all Rusty managed to get out before understanding and remember Sharon had been married, but was separated, so it still didn't answer the question: What was her husband doing here 8am on a Sunday?

John took a step forward his hands behind his back smiling at Rusty as Rusty gave him a once over, he was around Sharon's age , salt and pepper hair, he looked comfortable in his shirt and jeans although Rusty could picture him looking professional in the suit he found in the closet. He realized where Oliva got her eyes from as well as her height as he looked him over. "Hey Rusty, it's great to finally meet you." _Finally,_ what did that mean? Had Sharon and her husband been discussing Rusty behind his back? Sharon had promised to give Rusty a 30 day notice before anything changed in their lives and if her _sometimes husband _was moving back in, it would definably changed things.

"Yeah it's nice to meet you too" Rusty lied as he stood next to Sharon, happy she was so close letting him know she was there for him. "I didn't mean to interrupt, I was just hungry, but I can wait if you two need to _finish" _Sharon gave Rusty a confused look having been oblivious to the connections he was making in his mind she smiled to him pointing over at the kitchen. "No Rusty please go eat, I bought you that cereal you like, it's on the top shelf."

John stepped aside as Rusty walked past him into the kitchen and Sharon stepped up to John's side giving him a smile that made Rusty's stomach cringe. Sharon had once said she couldn't think of any nice things to say about her husband at one point, and now he was in their kitchen with her still in her pajamas.

John messed with the keys in his pocket giving Sharon a sideways glance before speaking again, "I should get going, just sign those papers when you get a chance and I can pick them up whenever. Rusty, it was great meeting you; I hope we can get together again soon." And with that he gave Sharon's shoulder a nudge for her to follow him to the door, once at the door he lowered his voice for only her to hear. "I've got to get going I've got a late breakfast thing at 9 I need to be at. Call me when you tell him, I want to hear all about it" and with that he leaned in and give her a soft kiss on her cheek before pulling away to walk out the door.

As Sharon turned she saw Rusty standing in the living room with a bowl of cereal in his hand looking at Sharon with questioning eyes, "Tell me what?"


	5. Chapter 5

**(Let me start by saying I'm really sorry it's taken me awhile to update. I'm in college and it's exam week for me, my mind had to focus elsewhere. I also had writers block, I wrote the second half of this story first and then came back to write the beginning, I just couldn't figure out where I wanted to go , as I was writing it I came up with an entire string of ideas and I hope your willing to go along for the ride, let me know what you think, always open to ideas!) **

Sharon looked nervously at Rusty as she walked further into the living room, "Rusty there is something I want to talk to you about, why don't we sit down?" Rusty did as Sharon asked and sat down on the couch. He set his bowl on the coffee table looking at her as she took the seat next to him.

"Rusty, I've been thinking about this for a long time now, ever since your fath-Daniel relinquished his rights to you." Sharon took a deep breath and reached for Rusty's hands, the look in his eyes held fear for what she would say next, as did hers. Sharon loved this boy more than words could describe and she only wanted the best for him.

"Rusty, I love you like you are own and I want you to feel that way, I want to do what's best for you, Rusty I want to make you a part of our family, I want this to be your home."

Rusty stared at Sharon for a moment, his mind had gone somewhere far off and Sharon sat patiently waiting for him to return with a response, a blink, a twitch, _something_. Rusty returned back from his own thoughts looking at Sharon, "I don't understand."

Sharon smiled at Rusty still holding his hands in hers a tear now visibly streaming down her face, "Rusty, I want to adopt you."

"Adopt me?" Rusty was stunned, on one hand he desperately wanted to be a part of Sharon's family, on the other, he still very much loved his mother and wanted her in his life. "I don't know what to say."

Sharon nodded as she continued to hold onto Rusty's hands hoping the disappointment she was feeling in her heart wasn't showing in her face. "You can think about it for as long as you need. It's a big decision Rusty and I understand you need time to think about it." Sharon smiled briefly as she released Rusty's hands placing hers back on her knees looking at him.

She hadn't expected Rusty not to be sure of what he wanted. Sharon had always tried to view things as Rusty did in order to understand his views on the situation. However this wasn't a normal situation, she was asking him to be a part of her family, _her son, _and this was a completely new territory that Sharon never expected to face.

"Sharon I love you, I just-"Rusty sighed not knowing the words to use, he wanted to say yes because he did love Sharon and was grateful for the way she had taken him in. On the other hand Rusty still missed his own mother very much and had hope she would still return. If he accepted Sharon's offer it meant he would never get that opportunity. Rusty finally shrugged his shoulders looking into Sharon's tear stained eyes, "I guess I need some time to think about it."

"Of course Rusty, take all the time you need, I understand" Sharon smiled at Rusty kissing his forehead as she stood turning back to the kitchen wiping her tears away as she walked into the kitchen to grab a drink. Once hidden behind the wall she rested her head against the cool steel fridge collecting her thoughts and her tears… _he needs time, be patient Sharon. _Sharon sighed as she opened the fridge reaching for the bottle of juice hearings Rusty's voice from the couch.

"I can still go to Jake's house today right? He's expecting me be over there in like 30 minutes." Rusty walked into the kitchen standing next to the counter looking at Sharon for a response, he needed to get away for a while, it was too hard to see her hurting and knowing he was behind it.

"Of course, have fun." Sharon smiled at Rusty regaining her composure as she poured a glass of juice and putting it back, "take your phone with you and be home before 9." Rusty smiled at Sharon's rules, his own mother never would have been concerned for Rusty's whereabouts on a Sunday night, she was always too busy with her latest boyfriend. Sharon's offer was sounding better and better. "Thanks Sharon, I will."

Rusty rushed down the hall to get ready to hang out with his friend and Sharon sat back down at the table looking over the pictures from her latest crime scene. This recent murder had Sharon baffled and looking for clues, unsure on how to proceed and today's stress wasn't helping any. As Sharon finished her orange juice she had concluded that a few more hours of sleep would do her some good. She stopped by Rusty's door telling him she was going to take a nap since they had been out so late and retired to her room. _Just a few hours and her mind could be at peace._

_**Sharon's mind was racing; all she could hear was her own screaming of Rusty's name as she was being restrained by one of her own officers as Rusty was being taken away social services. "Rusty, RUSTY!" No, this wasn't happening; they couldn't be taking him away from her. He was hers, he was her family, her son…they can't have him. "You can't do this! He needs me, please don't do this!" **_

"_**Captain, by definition…foster care is temporary; you shouldn't have gotten so attached. Your job demands too much of you and Rusty needs a better placement, you were shot at today, we can't have Rusty living in an unstable home, he needs stability." Cynthia's voice sounded in Sharon's head, yet the words went in one ear and out the other. **_

_**Sharon sobbed as she melted to the floor against a desk in the far wall. She couldn't speak or think, all she could hear were Rusty's cries for Sharon to help him, for her to save him, there was nothing she could do…he didn't belong to her. **_

As Sharon awoke the reality of her dream hit her instantly. It was true, Rusty wasn't hers to keep. Her job was unstable and Rusty could be taken from her at any minute without warning. Cynthia's words kept playing into Sharon's head _foster care is temporary_. As Sharon rubbed her eyes from the sleep feeling her body relax she heard her phone buzzing on the night stand. She started to realize it was her phone that woke her from her nightmare.

Sharon reached for the phone seeing the caller ID as Lieutenant Flynn and groaned at the possibility of a murder on a Sunday but it was the job and so Sharon pressed the phone to her ear trying to sound as pleasant as possible. "Afternoon Lieutenant, what can I do for you?"

Andy paused before speaking gathering his words carefully, "Sharon, there's been an accident…It's Rusty."


	6. Chapter 6

Sharon wasn't sure how she made it to the hospital after getting the phone call from Flynn. He wouldn't tell her any more other than to get to the hospital as soon as she could. Sharon almost forgot to throw on a t-shirt and jeans before running out the door of her condo. The entire car ride there she was on auto pilot, thinking of one thing only, Rusty was hurt, and she needed to be there.

As she rushed through the hospital doors at full speed she ran past the rest of her squad sitting in the waiting room chairs. Once they got the news that it was Rusty in the accident everyone wanted to be there to show their support for Rusty and their Captain. After racing down a few hallways her eyes found Flynn and Provenza standing outside a pair of glass doors leading to a small trauma room.

She shouted to them running at full speed, panic in her voice. Provenza turned to her holding up his hands to slow her. "Now Captain calm down-"Sharon cut him off instantly, even out of breath she still managed to get the words out "Where is Rusty? Is he okay?" Her voice was shaken and eyes filled with tears.

Provenza looked as if the wind had been knocked out of him and for once was at a loss for words. Andy took over taking a step towards Sharon giving his best poker face placing his hand on her shoulder. "It's bad Sharon."

Sharon looked at Andy for more information not sure what that meant, "_how bad?" _Sharon tried to move her eyes around her lieutenants to view inside the room but Andy took a step to the side blocking her view and grabbing her attention.

Andy sighed looking at Provenza, then back at Sharon before speaking, "Witness at the crime scene stated that-"

"Crime scene?!" Sharon steadied herself against the wall with her hand feeling her stomach turn. "Lieutenant, what the hell happened? Is Rusty okay!?"

Andy started to speak again this time looking directly into her eyes keeping her focus, "Witnesses reported that a semi was speeding and ran through the red light. It happened just as the car that Rusty was in drove through the intersection. The driver was killed on impact and-"Andy looked at Sharon giving her a minute to absorb the information he had just given her. "Sharon, Rusty is in critical condition, it doesn't look good."

Sharon took a step back from Andy tears streaming down her face and Provenza tried to keep his own emotions at bay. "Oh god this is all my fault, he wouldn't of left if I-" Provenza stepped forward placing his arms on his captain's shoulders looking directly into her eyes. "This isn't your fault, it's that son of a bitch who ran the red light. This is not your fault Sharon."

Andy began talking again as Provenza stepped away from Sharon setting his hands on the back of his head trying to calm his own nerves. "They said he's bleeding out internally and they are trying to stop it, there is a possible brain bleed- the nurse said he's lucky to be alive. Sharon they are doing everything they can for him."

Sharon stopped crying as she heard a small voice down the hall as she turned to see Cynthia rushing down the hallway fear crept over her body. _This wasn't happening, it was her nightmare coming to life, Rusty needed her and she couldn't do a damn thing. _

The shouting behind the doors grew louder as they opened and Sharon saw Rusty lying in a hospital bed bloodied and bruised, his head wrapped in a bandage his left wrist cut open and what looked of a broken angle as the wheeled him quickly down the hall towards surgery. He looked lifeless and Sharon felt her knees go weak instantly covering her mouth to cover the cry she let out. Feeling her legs would no longer support her as her head went dizzy, Sharon heard someone shout Captain as arms flew around her before her world went _dark._

_This time it was Andy's words of reality ringing in her ears… __**"It's bad Sharon."**_

_**(As always reviews are appreciated... let me know if you want me to continue ) **_


	7. Chapter 7

It had been hours, _**hours **_since they took Rusty into surgery, the fear and panic only continued to grow in the pit of Sharon's stomach. She continued to sit in the waiting room chair with her head in her hands trying to remain calm.

Her body felt weak from fainting before and legs had a rhythm of their own shaking as she sat in the chair. _How did this happen? I should of drove him, I should of told him to stay…I shouldn't of- _

Sharon was so lost in her own thoughts she was jolted when Cynthia's voice sounded in her ears.

"Sharon, why wasn't Rusty with you today?" Cynthia's question burned in Sharon's ears. _It's my fault, he wouldn't have been in that car- he wouldn't have wanted to get away if I hadn't- _Sharon had to stop herself from those thoughts and returned an answer to Cynthia placing her glasses in her hand. "He had plans with his friend. They were going to go to that new movie that's out. I thought- I didn't know Jake had his license." Sharon covered her eyes with her hand again feeling the tears coming to the surface again. _This is all my fault._

"How did you not know that his friend had his license? Do you know this young boy?" Cynthia's second question hit deeper than the first and Sharon wasn't sure how that was possible. She glanced over at Cynthia giving her the official Captain Raydor glare when another voice drew her attention. 

"Come on, I think you could use a cup of coffee" Andy held his hand out for Sharon to take. She hesitated for a moment, but would of done anything to get away from Cynthia's painful questions and took Andy's hand walking down the hall with him to a coffee machine. While putting quarters in the machine he glanced at Sharon giving her a warm smile trying to calm her nerves. "Rusty's a fighter, he'll pull through Captain."

Sharon stood against a cool wall leaning her head back, closing her eyes in silence while Andy busied himself with the coffee machine that seemed to be having difficulties. "This is my fault." Andy looked over at Sharon with a strange expression then back at the machine, "how could this be your fault, you didn't even touch the piece of crap." Andy kicked the bottom of the machine, oblivious that Sharon wasn't referring to the coffee at all.

"Not the damn machine Andy, Rusty…It's my fault he's here."

Andy finally looked at Sharon with a serious expression giving her his attention and taking a step towards her, "Sharon this isn't your fault, it was an accident. There is no way you could of done anything to prevent, If you had been driving then you would be the one dead right now and then where would Rusty be?"

Sharon hadn't thought about that, she had been blaming herself over and over, but Andy was right, it was an accident. If Sharon had been driving it doesn't mean there would have been a different outcome. However it didn't stop the regret she was carrying around.

As Andy and Sharon walked back towards the waiting room, Sharon heard a familiar voice and looked up to see the voice of Jake's mother Kathy, she was shaking and crying, demanding news about her son's condition. Sharon dropped her new cup of coffee the instant she met Kathy's eyes, _no, I can't do this. _

Sharon had given notifications hundreds of times, working in FID she was constantly giving a notification of a loved one's death, but not this. This was Rusty's friend, someone she had gotten to know. Months ago Kathy was thrilled when Jake met a new friend. He had been lonely in high school, the chess team was filled of people who did nothing but play chess, and Kathy was happy that Jake finally had a friend to hang out with on the weekend. Even knowing Rusty's past, Kathy never had her doubts about Rusty's friendship with Jake.

"Oh god, Sharon, where are the boys? The hospital called me and said there had been an accident, is Rusty okay? Where's Jake?"

Andy had immediately reached for Sharon's shoulder the moment she dropped her coffee and now felt her body shaking as the other women approached and stepped forward to take the lead.

"Kathy I-" Sharon covered hear mouth reaching for Kathy's hand, tears instantly finding their way to her eyes spilling over down her cheeks. Andy knew Sharon couldn't handle much more and handed her his coffee resting his hand over hers giving her shoulder a gentle squeeze before stepping towards Kathy asking her to follow him and leading her down the hallway.

Sharon stood there, her hand still over her mouth sobbing silently when a hand touched her back and she looked into Provenza's eyes, "Come on captain, lets take a seat."

They only made it a few steps before a nurse walked into the waiting room looking down at a file in her hand as she spoke "I'm looking for the family of Rusty Beck." As the nurse looked up she was surprised to see more than half of the room stand up looking at her with worried eyes.

Sharon took the few short steps towards the nurse wiping her tears "We're Rusty's family, Is he okay?"

**TBC? Possibly a Raydor/Flynn idea going on…please give me your thoughts, comments, ideas **


	8. Chapter 8

**I figured I couldn't leave you guys hanging forever and you wanted to know about Rusty's condition. This doesn't have much of a cliff hanger but the next chapter could get interesting. Let me know if I should continue. Thanks for all of your reviews, I'm so thrilled to know yours till enjoying it. **

The nurse studied the room full of people, many eyes meeting hers as she looked around holding the file closer to her body nodding. "I'm sorry, I'm looking for Rusty's immediate family only."

Sharon took a step forward nodding holding out her hands to the woman to explain "I'm his mother." The words fell out of her mouth so quickly and easily she almost believed it, but then had to correct herself as Cynthia took a step forward and Sharon looked at the nurse with pleading eyes, "I'm his foster mother, is Rusty okay?" Sharon wasn't sure she was ready for the answer and set her hands on her together bracing herself.

The nurse nodded holding her hand out to touch Sharon's shoulder, "he's alive, he's stable for the moment, the next 24 hours are critical."

Sharon felt her heart beat a mile a minute and pushed her hands together thanking God, _he's alive. _"When can I see him?"

The nurse smiled "You can see him now, but only for a few minutes, he's touch and go right now and we need to keep the room as clear as possible, Dr. Bines is in with him now in the ICU checking his vitals." The nurse began to walk with Sharon down the hall Cynthia only a few steps behind listening carefully. "Dr. Bines can tell you more about how Rusty's surgery went."

Sharon nodded as the nurse led them down the hallway and opened the glass door. Seeing the man in the white coat hover over Rusty, the faint sound of the monitor beeping and Rusty bandaged up. His body is covered in cuts and bruises. Sharon covered her mouth with her fingers wanting desperately to reach out to the boy she thought of as her son and forget this ever happened.

The nurse instructed Sharon and Cynthia that only one person could go at a time and Cynthia let Sharon go first, Sharon was thankful yet fearful, she didn't know if she could handle seeing Rusty like this.

The doctor turned around and met Sharon's eyes, a familiar face and she wondered how she didn't pick up on the name before. Mark Bines, the doctor she has worked rather close with in her years of working in FID. Whenever the nurses were giving her trouble Mark stepped in to give Sharon the information she needed. Mark and Sharon had taken their professional courtesy to the next level. Things had gone too far with them on a personal level and Sharon used Rusty living with her as an excuse, avoiding him for months. She never expected to see him again, defiantly not for him to be Rusty's surgeon.

Mark turned smiling at Sharon, after his relentless unanswered phone calls he had given up on ever seeing the woman again but none of that seemed to matter when he met her eyes. "Sharon, interesting seeing you here, another one of your gang members you need to interview? He's going to be out of it for a few days, kid got a massive blow to the head, coded on us three times in surgery."

Mark met her eyes again quickly realizing this wasn't a work visit, her t-shirt and jeans should have tipped him off in the beginning but after 18 hours of pure chaos his mind was a little shot. He felt complete devastation as Sharon began to sob into her hand and he rushed to her side wrapping an arm around her back pulling her close, wanting to protect her. After a few moments he took a step back when he realized she was forming words, "he's my foster son."

Sharon stepped away from Mark reaching for Rusty's hand holding it tightly in hers brushing his hair out of his eyes careful not to touch the bruised part of his skull seeing some of it bandaged and wrapped. Not looking at Mark she started to speak again. "How bad is it?"

He took a step forward standing behind her now looking Rusty over realizing how sensitive the situation was. "He's stable. He didn't have a brain bleed as we originally had thought. The internal bleeding has been contained for the time being. The next 24 hours are critical."

Sharon nodded wiping the tears from her eyes still holding Rusty's hand in hers looking him over. "Brain damage?" She barely got the words out, but knew she had to ask the question after his previous comment.

"It's a possibility with such an extensive trauma, however he is responding to touch sensations, we're monitoring him closely. We won't know the full extent of the damage until he wakes up."

"When will that be?" Sharon turns to Mark finally meeting his eyes. She felt completely vulnerable to his eyes and emotions.

Mark sighs looking into Sharon's green eyes reaching for her free hand wanting to reassure her. "Not for a while. We're keeping him sedated for now; his body needs time to heal without interruption." Seeing that Sharon isn't satisfied with his answer he squeezes her hand gently. "Let's just get through the next 24 hours first, okay? We'll know more then."

Sharon nods looking back at Rusty leaning down kissing his head gently whispering in his ear, "You're going to be okay, I'm here." Her eyes quickly filled with tears and jumped back as the monitor made a quick two pulse beat. "What was that?!" Sharon felt panic as she looked at Mark worried she had done something wrong.

Mark smiled now standing at the food of the bed as he signed off on a paper. Closing the file he gave a small chuckle looking at her smiling, "He can hear you…"

**There was not so much positive feedback about having a Sharon/Andy pairing so I decided to throw in a different twist and see what everyone thought. Not sure how much longer this story is going to be, It just depends on if you guys are still enjoying it or not.. let me know **** Thanks for all your reviews and comments, they are truly appreciated! Let me know what you think, any suggestions or ideas are always welcome! **


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